Plumbing Rough-In: Fascinating Facts

What you can see from your plumbing system, is a very small part of what’s actually goes into providing you with potable water and sanitation in your home. Apart from the washing machine, toilets, sinks, faucets and fixtures, there’s a huge hidden system that consists of supply pipes and other plumbing supplies. Today we delve into the plumbing rough-in, to give you an idea of what goes on behind the scenes.

Plumbers work with supply pipes, waste water pipes and fixtures, that all create an intricate system to which homeowners pay very little attention – until it doesn’t function as it should!

Understanding Water Supply

Plumbers deal with your plumbing system, starting from the service line that runs from the municipal source and extending to your home.

There is a trunk line, which is the main cold-water pipe. The trunk link divides, sending water to the water heater and to the many fixtures around the house. A paralleled hot-water trunk line mimics copies the cold-water trunk line, supplying your home’s fixtures with ocld water, whether both are required. The further away from the supply line, the smaller and narrower the pipes.

Water supply pipes are available in a variety of materials. Older homes used iron pipes, and copper, while most Toronto City licensed plumbers now recommend plastic pipes. While copper pipes is reasonably durable, plastic is much more flexible, easy to install and cost-effective. Since plastic is a flexible material, Toronto plumbers say that it will expand better when you have frozen pipes, leading to fewer burst pipes.

Plumber installation is key to success when you’re building or expanding your home. A master plumber will ensure that the pipes are tightly joined together, and in the case of copper, he will ensure that the joints are soldered. Plastic pipes should be joined using a solvent cement.

Waste Pipes Basics

Waste systems depend upon gravity, which is why all waste pipes should slope at a downward angle and away from the fixtures. It should drop at a minimum rate of 1/4 inch per 1″ horizontal toward the septic tank or the sewer.

A waste system should be vented, and will usually include an upward extending pipe that vents through the roof. This vent allows for smooth flow of waste and water and septic gasses, and without it, the waste would probably not drain at all.

Each plumbing fixture has a u-shaped trap that is always filled with water. This trap acts as a barrier to prevent sewer gasses from rising up through the pipes

Fixture Options

When it comes to choosing fixtures (those plumbing elements you can see), your plumber or designer will choose them according to the building codes and your needs. Here at Anta Plumbing, we stock some of the best brands, and our buying power enable us to provide you with the best prices.

Making It All Work Together

During the building process, a City of Toronto licenced plumber will be called to install the plumbing rough-in.

The Toronto plumber installation will involve first installing the waste system. Since the pipes are big and burly, it is much easier to lay them first and then install smaller supply pipes around that. The ends of the pipes are capped to allow the installation plumber to pressure test your new system and ensure that there are no leaks.

Plumbing rough-in is usually done before the foundation slab is poured for your new home. It is then ready to be inspected to ensure that it meets the city codes.

This is just one of the parts of a Toronto plumbers jobs that we at Anta Plumbing are so passionate about. Call us if you need plumbing rough-in for your new home, or for your basement conversion.